Dead Poets Society (1989)

Just finished watching Dead Poets Society, a 1989 movie drama about an English teacher named John Keating (played by no other than Robin Williams) who was out to inspire his students by way of poetry--- romantic poetry to be precise. The only problem is that the school values tradition and Keating's unorthodoxy posed a problem when students caused trouble. One somehow got his article published in the school newspaper, the gist of which is that the school should accept girls alongside boys. But things got serious when a student committed suicide because his father decided to transfer him to a military school instead after seeing him in a play. Keating was made a scapegoat so the students will be able to continue on with their lives and save themselves from expulsion.

When I first heard the title of this movie, I thought it was another one of those stupid horror movies or psychological thrillers. It's a good thing I discovered Robin Williams played the major role and so I was assured that it's no horror flick. Dead Poets Society is actually the name of the club formed by Keating's students. The members meet in a cave at night to discuss poetry and most times goof around.

As a former teacher (and still aspiring to be a teacher again), I can very well relate to John Keating. We're both romanticists and care little for pragmatism (though a professor of mine once described me as pragmatic... Well yes, I can be that, too, but I still am more of a romanticist). Romanticism, after all, is all about passion, the search for truth and beauty, the search for individual freedom, characterized by non-conformity. I find it a delight to hear quotes from the likes of Shakespeare, Lord Byron, Robert Frost, and Henry David Thoreau.

I remember that one semester when I taught Spanish in a university. Since it was my first time to teach at the collegiate level, I was more than eager to share what I know to my students, to take it as an opportunity to inspire those who are younger than me. I was 22 then and many of my students didn't respect me at first. But whenever I speak Spanish in front of them, whenever I tell them a little about archaeology, whenever I excitedly tell them about the latest book I've enjoyed, I could see jaws drop and eyes sparkle. I must seemed like a cool nerd to them. Maybe it's just my illusion but things became easier when they got to know more about me, like how I could be strict but compassionate, just but merciful. Most of my students were graduating at that time. I was touched when some told me how they appreciated having me as their teacher, how they learned a lot not just Spanish but about life in general. As my first students, they have a special place in my heart. They taught me about perseverance, determination, and humility (and occasional jokes, and that it's okay to be me... childlike and with my own set of quirky idiosyncrasies.)

When I heard news of how students are made to pay exorbitant fees and how some of these fees are not even explained to them, I encouraged them to challenge this. Education is getting more and more commercialized and especially in a private school, many students pay for things they do not really need. The last straw was discovering that fellow teachers extort money from students in exchange for passing grades. I was shocked beyond words and then I decided that that's it, I'm having none of this. That school was not where I belong. At that time, I didn't think that challenging the system would bear good fruits since all teachers I knew were identified by my students as unscrupulous. I never felt so alone.

So I exited, but without the touchingly beautiful ending in Dead Poets Society, where Keating's students stood on their desk one by one as an act of defiance to the headmaster and as a final respect for the man who led them to believe in freedom and truth and beauty. I exited in silence, submitting my letter of resignation on the last day I inputted my students' grades. I never told my students I would be gone the following semester.

Right above is the proud look on Keating's face after seeing that finally his students knew how to stand up for what they believe in.

I'm so inspired to be a teacher again...

Sugarhouse 8292013

One of my sisters visited Makati so I asked her to wait for my work to end so we can go eat somewhere and go home together. Since I have one voucher left from Deal Grocer, I made a last-minute reservation at Sugarhouse.

My first experience in Sugarhouse in Perea was a disaster. I didn't like the food. I had lasagna and I was greatly disappointed because the eggplant was not cooked properly and didn't blend well with the sauce. Another thing that irked me was that the prices on the menu were not updated so I was surprised to find that my blueberry cheesecake (which was dull and already brittle, with the berries all dried as well) cost P150 when in the menu it was less than that. And no, it wasn't the VAT nor the service charge.

So my visit this time had me not expecting much. I just wanted to dispose of the voucher. My sister and I shared a slice of sans rival cake. It wasn't bad. My sister even liked it (and this given that she was hesitant at first to eat sans rival).

We also shared burger sliders, four mini burgers with five potato tots. Just ordinary burgers and nothing special. The same with the potato tots. I still find Backyard Burgers' the best.

September

I almost forgot to write about how I spent my September and so here goes.

Since I couldn't get over how Backyard Burgers' offering taste so good, I went back for a Truffle Burger and a Cheeseburger. Seeing Hot Hombre Burger (this one's got jalapeño) which cost only P155 on the menu, I bought one, too. Their burgers are just the juiciest burgers I've ever tasted, and this second time, I got to notice just how soft and how fresh the buns were.

cross section of Backyard Burgers cheeseburger

Experiencing something bad at the office did not prevent me from having fun. I don't wanna delve into the details but it sure did help to take some time off to be with myself and to enjoy my own company. The 16th Cine Europa was just the very thing I needed since it's been a long time since my last movie theater visit. Movies, accompanied by my other love--- FOOD! So I tried Secret Recipe's Japanese soba (P225) which is mildly flavored by Japanese soy sauce. I love the mushroom and the crisp cabbage lettuce. A serving is good enough for two so I had to take out what I couldn't finish. Also tried Pho Hoa's grilled chicken banh mi (P175) which I found very aromatic. The grilled chicken can send anyone instantly to paradise. Yummy! I still think the french bread in Vietnam better though.

More on food... My sister and I had a date at Nomama Artisanal Ramen where I had Thai green curry ramen with 2 chicken cutlets. The soup has coconut milk and it's got just the right spiciness, not too spicy like most Thai foods. My sister had Tantanmen and it's okay. We shared an order of mushroom gyoza which I found to be expensive at P140 for just 5 pieces, but it's got mushroom slices inside. To cap our dinner, we had Japanese croquettes stuffed with white cheese and with aioli sauce which was very sour. Fusion cuisine works here effectively but prices are expensive. Our bill showed almost P1,000! We also brought home some sylvannas, bought from a store across Nomama. Not too sweet and very nice. I will miss those treats.

A friend of mine met up near Ayala Museum on a Friday and I brought her to Mercato Central near Glorietta. It's a weekend food market like the one I went to in UP-Ayala Technohub last year and in BGC earlier this year. This time I brought a cup of fried crablets and a cup of small fried shrimps (2 X P50= P100) and shawarma rice (P100). For dessert I had a cup of Merry Moo's Sea Salt Caramel (P70). Also that day at lunch, an officemate and I went to Mitsuyado Sei-men in Jupiter St.. I had Yuzu Tsukemen and Japanese fried rice with 3 pcs gyoza. The tsukemen reminds me of breezy summer evenings, probably because of the citrusy taste (probably lime) and the cold tsukemen were QQ. (I'd LOVE to go back there to try other tsukemen.) For my snack the following day, I brought a matcha cronut at Yamato bakeshop. It's too expensive and while it's not sweet at all, it feels like eating bicho with green tea cream.

I'm happiest when I get to enjoy a play. This month, a friend and I went to see DUP's "The Duchess of Malfi". Lots of anachronistic elements and I was even shocked by a brief nudity, but the play as a whole was effective in its goal to portray how far man's greed can go. The ending was a tragedy but in between were witty and comedic lines bound to make the audience laugh out loud.

Trigonometry in Calculus

Right now, I'm taking a little break from studying Calculus today. Before leaving for Ilocos, I studied the derivative of logarithms  (a.k.a. logarithmic differentiation... Okay I sound so smart but really I'm struggling with all the things one must remember...) and while everything is a bit hazy, I didn't review much when I got back and immediately continued on, finding myself face to face with trigonometry once again.

Now trigonometry is one of my favorite math topics despite my slow speed in solving and/ or proving because I'm so used to drawing circles and determining formulas all on my own every time I solve a trigonometric function. Sometimes I get frustrated because I can't seem to just memorize the formulas, but in the end, I pride myself at being able to derive formulas from the ones I already know by heart.

So just to share, here are the the derivatives of trigonometric functions as well as the derivatives of the inverse of trigo functions. (Just hoping that everytime I see them here in my blog they'll get stuck to my brain LOL):

1. d/dx sin x= cos x
2. d/dx cos x= -sin x
3. d/dx tan x= sec^2 x
4. d/dx cot x= -csc^2 x
5. d/dx sec x= sec x tan x
6. d/dx csc x= -csc x cot x

1. d/dx arcsin x= 1/ (sqrt (1-x^2))
2. d/dx arccos x= -1/ (sqrt (1-x^2))
3. d/dx arctan x= 1/ (1+x^2)
4. d/dx arccot x= -1/ (1+x^2)
5. d/dx arcsec x= 1/ ( |x| sqrt (x^2-1))
6. d/dx arccsc x= -1/ ( |x| sqrt (x^2-1))

Actually the derivatives of the inverse are a bit easier to remember because they come in pairs. Derivatives of arcsin and arccos are almost same except one is positive and the other is negative. The same goes for the pairs arctan/arccot and arcsec/arccsc. 

It's been a while since I last did trigo, which was in the summer of 2010 when I enrolled in Math 17 (Algebra and Trigonometry) just to see how difficult it really is. I got two perfect scores out of five quizzes but unfortunately I flunked the final exam because I was overwhelmed by the number of items and we just had one hour to finish. (Deriving formulas ate up most of my time, you see.)

Now I'm hoping to somehow be able to use this knowledge for mapping sites. It would be very cool to be able to create a map of an irregularly shaped site.

And I also need to relearn how to use the scientific calculator if I want to get answers fast.

Solo Travel 1: Ilocos

Back last night from a solo trip from Ilocos. It was my first time to do it. My parents thought I was with a friend; I couldn't tell them the truth but they assumed I was with someone. I was afraid they'd say no, despite having proven myself capable of wandering and finding my way home in Hong Kong. Still, they insist, HK is different from the Philippines. Here danger lurks everywhere. So when I arrived home last night after a 10-hour bus ride, I was greeted by a brief sermon about my solo gallivanting, reminding me of the Davantes case, etc.

Touchdown Laoag airport: More than an hour's delay due to weather turbulence causing zero visibility

It didn't help when I told them I didn't go out at night and I was always back inside my room in the hotel before 6pm. I think they do understand something about me now, that I can get extra restless, (hopefully not reckless...) and that from time to time, I need a breath of fresh air from the countryside because sadly, I suffer in this urban jungle called Metro Manila. I wish to one day be able to procure a land and develop it into a farm and create a sustainable way of life while enjoying my books and nature around me. If Thoreau was able to do it, I don't see why I can't.

Three nights of sleeping without a companion and three days spent mostly on the road with strangers on public vehicles, I felt more independent, more alive, more free, more contemplative. In my travels early this year, I learned the art of communicating with locals. I ought to thank my training in archaeology for this because it was during our fieldschool when I first discovered how friendly the locals really are, and how they can make your trip more worthwhile by suggesting to you things you don't get to see or experience when you opt to book a tour from agencies. In travelling solo, you exercise full agency, you have complete control of time and resources, you can go from one place to another without worrying about companion/s. 

But the road can also get lonely. 

On the upside, it forced me to really get to know other people. I chatted with the manager of the restaurant in the hotel I stayed in who is from Cagayan Valley. I chatted with the lovely ladies of Ilocos Norte Museum who both admired my courage in travelling on my own. I chatted with the guide in Syquia Mansion in Vigan and one of the descendants of the Syquia family. I chatted and interviewed a National Museum official in Burgos Museum. I chatted with a passenger who works as a mascot and who sat beside me in the bus on my way back to Manila. I was humbled by their stories, I was inspired by their own travels, and I was warmed by their willingness to open up to me, a complete stranger.

I have spent some time in a beach in Pasuquin. While most visitors go to Pagudpud for the white beaches there (I saw many pictures on the internet and I too, want to go there but because of the typhoon, I decided to go to a much calmer beach instead.) I was totally alone in the beach, but I was pleasantly surprised when a dog followed me and kept me company. He was such a sweet dog.

My sole companion in a secluded beach in Nalvo, Pasuquin

My Ilocos trip was different in that I didn't visit the usual places a visitor must go to. Instead, I focused on my two great interests: churches and museums. Since renting a tricycle was costly, I decided to travel like a local and take the jeepney and/or bus. I prayed in each church I visited. Not that I am a super religious Catholic, it's more of a trip in search of spirituality and meaning. I am awed at the magnificent churches of Ilocos. Paoay Church truly lives up to expectations. But there's also Bantay Church and Sta. Monica Church. I even attended mass in Ilokano at Vigan Cathedral just to get a feel of the local way.

Sunday mass celebrated in St. Paul Metropolitan Cathedral (aka Vigan Cathedral)

At night yes, I get scared. Sometimes I think there are ghosts with me in the room. It sounds creepy but for comfort, I always quote to myself Psalm 23: "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. (...) I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."

I can't say that having been through it all, I felt a lot better. But I did feel a certain kind of calm, a tenderness that says "all will be well, do not worry."

So in the coming days, my posts will be about my journey in Ilocos. 

I wish I had read these before I went on my trip:
http://www.vagabondish.com/beat-loneliness-solo-travel/
http://www.ndoherty.com/travel/
http://www.candaceroserardon.com/2012/07/loneliness-on-the-road/
http://www.wanderingearl.com/feeling-lost-confused-lonely-while-traveling/

Or maybe having not read these was helpful for me to get to know myself better and to see for myself how I would behave when put in situations I have been in. I threw my life to the winds again, and I  discovered things I had never known before, things that cannot be learned under any other circumstances.*

*(in reply to an article I submitted to Youngblood two years ago)

update: See where I went to and what I did